"You Are A Priest Forever, In The Order Of Melchizedek." (Hebrews 7:17)
Melchizedek's priesthood was superior to the Levitical priesthood in at least five ways.
1). Melchizedek's Priesthood Was Universal, Not National:
- The Levitical priesthood focused on God as Yahweh or YHVH.
This name was uniquely related to God's covenant with Israel. The Levitical
priesthood could minister only for Israel.
- Melchizedek was priest of the Most High God. The word for
God used here is “Elyon” which is a much more universal name of God. It
represents God as possessor of heaven and earth. This most high God is over both
Jew and Gentile.
2). Melchizedek's Priesthood Was Royal:
- Levitical priests were not to be kings.
- Melchizedek was himself a king.
- David looked forward to this event in Psalm 110:1-4.
3). Melchizedek's Priesthood Was Righteous And Peaceful:
- There was no permanent righteousness or peace related to
Aaron's priesthood. Melchizedek's very name means “king of righteousness”. He
was king of Salem (Jerusalem), which also implies king of peace.
4). Melchizedek's Priesthood Was Personal, Not Hereditary:
- In the Levitical priesthood, your ancestry was everything.
You had to be born into the tribe of Levi to become a priest.
- Melchizedek's parents are not given and the tribe of Levi
didn't even exist at this time. It was because of who he was and not because of who his parents were that allowed him to be a priest.
5). Melchizedek's Priesthood Is Eternal, Not Temporal:
- In the Levitical priesthood, a priest could serve from the
time he was 25 until the age of 50. No priest, no matter how faithful, could
serve more than 25 years.
- Melchizedek priesthood is perpetually (Heb. 7:3).
Miscellaneous:
Articles related to Messiah's Priesthood include:
Read more about The Messiah
Acknowledgments:
John MacArthur's commentary on Book of Hebrews
p173-176.
